Ready or Not
It was right around the time when newlywed Grace (Samara Weaving) punched her pre-teen nephew in the face and subsequently fell into a pit filled with decomposing bodies that I found myself completely shutting off to Ready or Not, the new horror-comedy from filmmaking collective Radio Silence. From there, atrophy set in—rendering me numb to each subsequent act of violence that was supposed to shock and/or amuse me. In Ready or Not, the significant efforts—expended by screenwriters Guy Busick and Ryan Murphy, and codirectors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett—to riff on awful rich people and the dumb shit we all do in the name of family are completely undermined by every moment of screeching histrionics and squishing flesh, with the filmmakers' attempts to land a big gut punch with the film's final line feels instead like getting gently slapped with a wet nap.
by Robert Ham